Currency Exchange APIs
Access foreign exchange (forex) rates, currency conversion services, and historical exchange rate data from central banks and financial institutions worldwide.Available APIs
1Forge
Forex currency market dataAuth: API Key | HTTPS: Yes | CORS: Unknown
Amdoren
Free currency API with over 150 currenciesAuth: API Key | HTTPS: Yes | CORS: Unknown
Fixer.io
Exchange rates and currency conversionAuth: API Key | HTTPS: No | CORS: Unknown
Bank of Russia
Exchange rates and currency conversionAuth: None | HTTPS: Yes | CORS: Unknown
Currency-api
Free Currency Exchange Rates API with 150+ Currencies & No Rate LimitsAuth: None | HTTPS: Yes | CORS: Yes
CurrencyFreaks
Provides current and historical currency exchange rates with free plan 1K requests/monthAuth: API Key | HTTPS: Yes | CORS: Yes
Currencylayer
Exchange rates and currency conversionAuth: API Key | HTTPS: Yes | CORS: Unknown
CurrencyScoop
Real-time and historical currency rates JSON APIAuth: API Key | HTTPS: Yes | CORS: Yes
Czech National Bank
A collection of exchange ratesAuth: None | HTTPS: Yes | CORS: Unknown
Economia.Awesome
Portuguese free currency prices and conversion with no rate limitsAuth: None | HTTPS: Yes | CORS: Unknown
ExchangeRate-API
Free currency conversionAuth: API Key | HTTPS: Yes | CORS: Yes
Exchangerate.host
Free foreign exchange & crypto rates APIAuth: None | HTTPS: Yes | CORS: Unknown
Exchangeratesapi.io
Exchange rates with currency conversionAuth: API Key | HTTPS: Yes | CORS: Yes
Frankfurter
Exchange rates, currency conversion and time seriesAuth: None | HTTPS: Yes | CORS: Yes
FreeForexAPI
Real-time foreign exchange rates for major currency pairsAuth: None | HTTPS: Yes | CORS: No
National Bank of Poland
A collection of currency exchange rates (data in XML and JSON)Auth: None | HTTPS: Yes | CORS: Yes
VATComply.com
Exchange rates, geolocation and VAT number validationAuth: None | HTTPS: Yes | CORS: Yes
Use Cases
Currency exchange APIs are essential for:- E-commerce: Display prices in multiple currencies and process international payments
- Travel Apps: Convert currencies for travelers and show local prices
- Financial Apps: Track forex rates and build currency converters
- Accounting Software: Handle multi-currency transactions and reporting
- Investment Platforms: Monitor foreign exchange markets
- Banking Applications: Provide real-time exchange rates to customers
Key Features
Most currency exchange APIs provide:- Real-time Rates: Current exchange rates updated frequently throughout the day
- Historical Data: Access to past exchange rates for analysis and reporting
- Currency Conversion: Direct conversion between any two currencies
- Time Series: Track rate changes over time
- Multiple Currencies: Support for 150+ global currencies
- Base Currency: Ability to set any currency as the base for calculations
Getting Started
When choosing a currency exchange API:- Check update frequency: How often are rates refreshed?
- Review coverage: Does it include all currencies you need?
- Understand pricing: Many offer free tiers with rate limits
- Verify data sources: Central banks provide the most reliable data
- Consider reliability: Look for APIs with high uptime guarantees
- Check historical data: How far back does historical data go?
Free vs Paid Options
Free APIs (like Currency-api, Frankfurter, Exchangerate.host):- Great for personal projects and development
- May have rate limits
- Usually sufficient for basic currency conversion
- Higher rate limits
- More frequent updates
- Additional features like time series and fluctuation data
- Better for production applications
Popular Providers
- Central Banks: Bank of Russia, Czech National Bank, National Bank of Poland
- Financial Data: Fixer.io, Currencylayer, 1Forge
- Open Source: Frankfurter, Currency-api
- Regional: Economia.Awesome (Brazil), VATComply.com (Europe)